The positive line has shown up across your drug store pregnancy test. The rush of excitement pulses through your body. Many emotions rage through you. Maybe you’re anxious, make you are shocked, maybe you are terrified but most likely you are filled with the utmost joy. A little life will join you in around 9 months. A little precious ball of responsibility.
The day comes and your little one has made his/her entrance into the world. Maybe family flocks to greet the new life that has come to our earth. Friends douse you with kind words and support of ¨if you need anything. I´m here.¨ Maybe it’s you and your significant other. Maybe it’s just you. No matter what, a precious miracle has presented themselves to you to love and take care of.
A little overwhelming right?
Sometimes postpartum depression shows up whether we recognize it or not. Postpartum depression is actually really common in women. For some we’ve never even heard of it until we actually experience it. Maybe you have a toddler to take care of, a crying newborn, a husband who has to go back to work all too soon while just having a traumatic birth.
Crying is normal. It is normal to feel sad after having a baby. It’s not all rainbows and butterflies like your Facebook friend portrays it. It’s hard balancing a new life, a changing body and recovering mentally and physically.
Ask for help. Sometimes this is such a hard thing to do especially when we’re trying to prove ourselves as super women mothers who have it all together. We’re concerned about asking for help. We don’t want to admit to the doctor there is something off. We don’t want to be put on even a tiny dose of medication to help cope with our baby blues so maybe we can enjoy this special time a little more. We don’t want people to know. We feel embarrassed and feel like inadequate moms. We worry about everyone except the person that needs to matter at that time, ourselves. But the medicine helps. It’s not like it has to be forever.
Find a friend that you can talk to and be open with about your struggles. Once you open up about it, you may be surprised that a lot of your friends with children have experienced the things as you have. Postpartum is just one of those topics that isn’t really discussed but it should be! It should be an open topic in order us as women to help each other.
But most of all know that you are enough. You are meant to take care of this miracle, to guide him/her through this life. Do not doubt yourself. Give yourself some time to heal. Give yourself some time to adjust. Mostly, give yourself a break. You can do this. You are a remarkable mom.